Labradorite Tumbled Stones, 1 lb, 1-2"

A full pound of tumbled stones. Pieces around 1 to 2 inches, sold by weight, so the count varies.

The flash. Blue, gold, or green depending on the angle, which is the whole point of the stone.

Sized for the pocket. Big enough to hold and turn, small enough to carry or scatter through a grid.

• Approximately 1 pound of tumbled stones, roughly 1 to 2 inches each; count varies
• Material: natural labradorite
• Note: labradorite is a feldspar and can chip along its cleavage planes; store it apart from harder stones
• Flash and shade vary widely from stone to stone
• SKU: GTLAB2B

The flash is the whole story, and it is genuinely a physical thing: light entering the stone bounces between microscopic internal layers and comes back out as color that was never in the pigment. The mineral was named in the 1770s after Labrador, where Moravian missionaries first collected it, and an Inuit legend holds that the northern lights were once trapped in the rocks of that coast until a man struck them free with his spear, leaving some behind in the stone.

Labradorite has no entry in Cunningham or the older folk sources, so we leave its element and planet blank rather than inventing them. What modern crystal practice has made of it follows the flash: a stone kept for intuition and for what stays hidden until the light hits it right. Judy Hall places it at the third eye. Bought by the pound, it becomes working material: the pocket stone carried, the handful scattered through a grid, the one pressed into a friend's hand because the flash sells itself.

1. Cleanse the batch on arrival with smoke or moonlight; skip salt and long soaking, since feldspar dislikes both.
2. Carry one in the pocket and turn it when you have a hand free; that is when the flash appears.
3. Set one where light moves across it through the day, a windowsill or a desk by a lamp.
4. Scatter a handful through a grid.
5. Give them away. A pound goes a long way, and this is the easiest stone on the shelf to hand to someone.

• Labradorite Grade A Untumbled, 1 lb: the same stone raw, by the pound.
• Labradorite Free Shape, 0.6 lb: a larger polished piece for the altar.
• Labradorite Rough Wire Cage Pendant: the same stone worn.
• Lemurian Mini Quartz Points, 1 lb: quartz points to amplify a grid.
• White Sage Smudge Stick: the arrival cleanse for a pound of stones.

What causes the flash?

Light bouncing between microscopic layers inside the stone, an optical effect called labradorescence, named after the mineral. It is not pigment; the color is made by the structure.

What does practice keep it for?

Intuition, and for what stays hidden until the light hits it right. These are modern crystal attributions; labradorite has no entry in Cunningham, so we assign it no element or planet. Hall places it at the third eye.

How many stones come in a pound?

It varies, since they are sold by weight rather than count. At 1 to 2 inches, a pound generally gives a good handful.

Will they all flash?

Natural labradorite varies. Most pieces flash well at some angle, but the strength and color of the flash differ stone to stone, which is part of the character.

How do I care for them?

Smoke or moonlight to cleanse. Skip salt and long soaking, and store them apart from harder crystals, since feldspar chips along its cleavage.